NFL NEWS ARCHIVE

Ex-Jets QB Fitzpatrick lands with Bucs

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers reached an agreement with free agent quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick on Friday to serve as the backup to Jameis Winston.

The deal is for one year and worth a reported $3 million that includes incentives to take the base salary higher.

The 34-year-old Fitzpatrick has started 116 games over his 12 seasons in the NFL, including 27 the past two years with the New York Jets. He made $12 million last season.

Fitzpatrick will be joining his seventh NFL team after playing for the St. Louis Rams (2005-06), Cincinnati Bengals (2007-08), Buffalo Bills (2009-12), Tennessee Titans (2013), Houston Texans (2014) and Jets (2015-16).

Fitzpatrick had a career season in 2015, his first year with the Jets, leading the team to 10 wins and setting the franchise record with 31 touchdown passes.

A contract impasse caused him to miss the next offseason program that may have contributed to a subpar 2016 when the Jets finished 5-11. He was benched twice last season and threw 17 interceptions and only 12 touchdowns, with a league-low passer rating of 69.6.

Fitzpatrick entered the league as a seventh-round pick of the Rams in 2005 out of Harvard. He is 46-69-1 as a starter and for his carrer has thrown for 25,888 yards with 166 touchdown passes and 133 interceptions.